[BN] the know

Next weather worry: Strong winds

Western New York appears to have dodged the threat of any widespread freezing rain overnight, but next up in this wacky winter will be some heavy winds for the next 24 hours or so.

The National Weather Service late this morning issued a wind advisory for the whole region, with most areas under the advisory from 1 p.m. today to 5 a.m. Tuesday.

Forecasters are calling for southwest winds of 25 to 35 mph, with gusts up to 50 mph in some areas. Those winds are expected to bring down some trees and create isolated power outages.

The weather service also issued a gale warning for the upper Niagara River, the Buffalo harbor and Lake Erie, from Ripley to Dunkirk to Buffalo, with waves expected to reach 10 to 13 feet. That gale warning is through 4 a.m. Tuesday, while a similar warning for Lake Ontario expires at 10 a.m.